There are certain combinations that simply make sense. Champagne and celebrations. Whisky and a roaring fire. A cold beer and a sunny afternoon. But what about Japanese city pop and gin, or Bollywood EDM with mango vodka and chilli? At Rake’s Café Bar in East London, cocktails are no longer simply something you drink – they are something you listen to as well.



Located within Andaz London Liverpool Street, Rake’s has launched The Sound of Cocktails, a new menu that pairs ten original cocktails with bespoke playlists inspired by each drink’s ingredients, flavour profile, texture and personality. It is an intriguing concept that asks a wonderfully simple question: if a cocktail could have its own soundtrack, what would it sound like?

The idea comes from Rake’s Beverage Manager Guilherme Vieira and Andaz London Liverpool Street’s music curator and resident DJ Michelle Lynn. Together, they have combined two disciplines that already rely heavily on atmosphere, emotion and personal taste, creating cocktails that move from the glass to the dancefloor through playlists spanning neo-soul, Japanese jazz, reggae, Bollywood EDM, melodic techno, R&B and reggaeton.

Rather than simply choosing a few songs that complement the mood of the bar, Vieira and Lynn approached every drink individually. They sat down together, tasted each cocktail and discussed its flavours, textures and the emotions it evoked before Michelle began translating those sensations into music. The result is a collection of pairings that can sometimes feel immediately logical and, at other times, wonderfully unexpected.



“Guilherme and I have wanted to bring this idea to life for a while,” explains Michelle. “We sat down together to taste every cocktail and talk about the flavours, textures and emotions each one evoked, before translating those into music.”

Her favourite is The Aftermath, a decadent combination of butter-infused Bulleit Bourbon, butterscotch and absinthe. Rich, warming and slightly herbal, it has been paired with the smooth sounds of neo-soul and quiet storm, with artists including Hiatus Kaiyote, Cleo Sol, Sade and Charlotte Dos Santos helping to create its late-night character.

At the opposite end of the spectrum is Kyoto Kiss, which combines Tanqueray No. 10 Gin with Japanese umeshu, grapefruit and chamomile. Delicate citrus, restrained sweetness and a subtle savoury character are accompanied by Japanese jazz-inspired sounds, with names including Herbie Hancock, Jiro Inagaki and His Soul Media, Thelonious Monk and Masayoshi Takanaka appearing in its playlist.

For something a little more energetic, Afterbeats mixes Desi Daru mango vodka with chilli and elderflower, resulting in a sweet, spicy and vibrant cocktail paired with Bollywood EDM, bhangra and Punjabi dance. Farasat Anees, Karan Aujla and Geeta Rabari provide part of the soundtrack, turning what is already a lively drink into something that feels destined for the dancefloor.

“Michelle has taken these cocktails to somewhere I could never have imagined,” says Guilherme Vieira. “Seeing each drink transformed into its own soundtrack has added another dimension to the experience. It’s fascinating how a combination of Tanqueray, umeshu, grapefruit and chamomile can become Japanese city pop, while mango vodka, chilli and elderflower naturally find their home on the dancefloor to Bollywood EDM.”

There are plenty of other combinations to explore. Smoke & Harmony brings together pineapple and cinnamon-infused Bacardí rum with orange, vanilla, smoke and a subtle saline edge, accompanied by reggae and dancehall from artists including Sister Nancy, Dennis Brown, Barrington Levy and Sean Paul. Rhythm & Rhum combines pandan-infused rum with coconut, yuzu and aromatic oils alongside deep house, downtempo and Southeast Asian fusion.

Pink Cassette is perhaps one of the most playful entries on the menu, pairing Ciroc vodka, jasmine liqueur, peach and raspberry with an unapologetically pop-heavy soundtrack featuring Charli xcx, Chappell Roan, PinkPantheress, Zara Larsson and Dua Lipa. Liquid Neon, meanwhile, mixes Tanqueray gin, Aperol and elderflower beneath a citrus foam and takes things firmly into club territory with melodic techno, tech house and electronic music from Disclosure, BICEP, Miss Monique and Stephan Bodzin.

For those who prefer things a little smoother, Slow Jam blends Ciroc vodka with melon, rhubarb and raspberry for a velvety cocktail backed by 1990s and 2000s R&B, soul and slow jams. Artists including H.E.R., Victoria Monét and Ella Mai provide an appropriately laid-back soundtrack.

Then there is El Último Baile – literally, “the last dance” – which sounds designed for that moment when sensible people might be thinking about heading home, but the night has other ideas. Ciroc vodka is combined with bittersweet Cadello 88, banana and coffee to create a rich, punchy late-night serve, accompanied by reggaeton from the likes of Bad Bunny, Pitbull, Ivy Queen and KAROL G.

Vinyl Sunset takes another route entirely, using tequila infused with kiwi and citrus before being lightly carbonated to create a bright, crisp and refreshing cocktail. Its soundtrack moves through beach house, Balearic and nu-disco, with artists including Lazywax, Be.Lanuit and Nu Genea creating something that feels made for long summer evenings.

What makes The Sound of Cocktails particularly interesting, however, is that the musical element does not disappear once the drink reaches the table. Each cocktail is presented with a garnish tag and collectible coaster carrying artwork inspired by its accompanying playlist, along with a QR code that lets guests immediately listen on their phone. The music can be enjoyed while drinking at Rake’s or saved and streamed again at home, extending the experience well beyond the bar itself.

There is also something refreshingly human about the concept. In an era when so much music discovery is dictated by algorithms, The Sound of Cocktails puts curation back into the hands of an individual. These are not playlists generated because somebody once listened to a similar track; they are selections deliberately chosen by a DJ in response to the flavours, aromas and emotions of a drink.



That philosophy already plays an important part in life at Rake’s. Michelle curates Brunch Paradiso every Saturday, where a rotating, femme-focused line-up of London DJs provides the soundtrack alongside brunch and unlimited cocktails or prosecco. Later this year, she will also begin hosting DJ masterclasses at the venue, allowing guests to get behind the decks and learn some of the fundamentals of mixing for themselves.

Cocktail bars have long experimented with theatrical presentation, unusual ingredients and elaborate techniques, but The Sound of Cocktails takes the idea of immersion in a different direction. Instead of adding more smoke, glassware or decoration, Rake’s is using another sense entirely.

Whether anyone can literally taste music is perhaps a debate best left until after a few cocktails. But pairing a Japanese-inspired gin serve with jazz, a fiery mango cocktail with Bollywood EDM or a buttery bourbon drink with Sade certainly has the potential to change how you experience what is in the glass.



And if nothing else, it gives ordering a drink a completely new question to consider: not just “What do I fancy drinking tonight?” but “What do I want to listen to?”